Night's Wish
by WhatOnEarthIsThis
Summary: Shauna Vayne, the best Night Hunter, has been tasked to destroy the new Skullgirl that has arised. She has heard about the legends of the Skullheart, and deep inside her mind, she believes that maybe the myth is true. Will she succumb to the unlimited power of the Skullheart, or will she resist it?


Vayne was preparing everything she would need before doing one of her biggest missions: to destroy the Skullheart, the item that, supposedly, could grant any woman a wish, as long as she was pure. However, by what Vayne had heard, not a single soul had been ever conceded a wish, which made her think that it was a trap to condemn pure women and make them Skullgirls, demons with immense power. Vayne made sure everything was ready, and started her travel to Canopy Kingdom.

Once she was inside there, and after asking some of the locals, she found out the location of the Skullheart. No big problem, she thought, and she started her road for it. Swamps, deserts, forests and even a jungle were part of the locations that the Night Hunter passed through to find the Skullheart. On her way there, she found barely any opposition. Maybe, she thought, no one will attempt to take such an item and risk their bodies and soul to the darkness. Shauna Vayne thought how resistant the Skullheart would be, and she hoped the silver bolts were enough for the job.

Finally, she arrived to the castle where, supposedly, the legendary item was located. Before she could enter, however, she found what looked to be a nun in the entrance. "What could a nun be doing here?" Vayne thought. She prepared for a fight and got close to the nun. The nun, suddenly, jumped towards her, and if Vayne hadn't tumbled fast enough, history would be quite different from now. But she managed to escape Double's claws, and so Vayne saw what was in front of her. A monster with no discernable details... that then transformed into Vayne itself, a clone.

The Night Hunter had found herself copied in Double. The monster was almost exactly like her, and somehow, copied all her techniques which she learned during years of training. Vayne had to fight to death with it before she could enter the castle, and an intense battle happened. Vayne tumbled, sidestepped and acted defensively, only getting the occasional shot on Double before she had to sidestep to dodge her incoming attacks. However, Double made a fatal mistake, by throwing herself into Vayne, and instead hitting a wall. Vayne didn't doubt for a moment what she had to do.

Ten silver bolts later, Double was nothing but a puddle. Vayne congratulated herself, while she reminded that it wasn't over yet. She entered the castle and started her search for the Skullheart, focusing totally on the environment so she would not be trapped in an unfavorable position. After an intense search, she found the Skullheart. It was unlike anything she had seen; even with her training to resist dark forces, she felt tempted to try to obtain a wish with it: to destroy all darkness in Runeterra and Canopy Kingdom, to end it all. She was tired of fighting the ever-growing darkness, to fight against the common. Deep inside Shauna Vayne, she wanted to rest once.

While she thought about that, she felt something on her back and turned around quickly, while tumbling on the opposite direction. She only saw a teenager, maybe 15 or 16 years old. She looked normal, like an innocent maiden. Before the Night Hunter realized, the teenager ran to the crystal and asked for a wish: to be married with her lover. To the surprise of Vayne, nothing happened to her, and a peace was felt in the room, and even Shauna made a smile for her. Maybe the Skullheart actually works...

But she was there to destroy it. Even if Vayne tried to use it to end all darkness in the world, she thought in a rational way. Maybe it failed to detect if that teenager was impure or something, it can't be real... Suddenly, another girl, this time a 10 year old blonde girl appeared. "Are you... a Night Hunter? Vayne?" asked the little girl to her. She nodded positively. "I can't believe this! You've come to destroy the Skullheart?" Vayne said, "Yes"

Suddenly, the little girl hugged Vayne. The Night Hunter felt loved and, by some reason, wanted to love her back. But her position wouldn't allow it. After all, Night Hunters must be celibate and never fall in love with anyone at all. She regretted for a moment to have become a Hunter, and Vayne imagined being in a normal house in Demacia, with a loving husband and two children of her own, playing and teaching them about this world... What a wonderful life, she thought. But only I can attain it when everything else is done for. And so, she pushed lovingly the little girl to her side, and aimed her weapon to destroy with one shot the Skullheart. Almost there...

And then she fell to the ground. Vayne didn't realize the little girl had taken her down, but still, she quickly recovered and stood up, analyzing the place to find the monster that had pushed her. She found out the little girl wasn't just a girl, but instead she was a monster, a small one, but a threat nevertheless. Vayne tried to shoot it, but suddenly a tentacle appeared and took all the weapons and silver bolts she had. There she was, the legendary Night Hunter weaponless and defenseless against a little girl!

"I've seen your heart's desire, Shauna Vayne. Leave all this fight against darkness to other people, and be free, happy, loved and being able to love! Just accept the Skullheart, and your dreamed life shall happen, darling. Even I can be your daughter!"

Vayne was forced to accept the legendary item. She feared she would become a demon...

Yet nothing happened.

Then she flashed back to her life, the moment where his father was fighting the witch. She knew what to do: distract her. Vayne distracted the witch and his father had no doubts: with a single slash, the witch's life was no more. Vayne would have another chance to live her life, to marry someone, to not become a Night Hunter, to change her destiny.

Some nights, though, she thinks what could've happened if she didn't propose herself to destroy the Skullheart. But then her husband caresses her, and she falls asleep, knowing this is the life she wants now.


End file.
